Missing Uptown Girl May Be A Runaway

Authorities believe an 11-year-old, mentally-disabled, Uptown girl who has been missing for two weeks may have run away from home and could be staying with a friend, police said.

April Hall of the 900 block of West Eastwood Avenue was last seen Oct. 23 while waiting for a school bus outside of her home, Belmont Area Youth Officer James Stanton said.

Police have conducted door-to-door searches in the neighborhood and distributed fliers with her picture. Investigators spent much of last week investigating neighborhood sightings of April, none of which have yielded results, Stanton said.

April is described as Caucasian, 5 feet tall, 80 pounds and having shoulder-length light brown hair, a pale complexion and a small scar on her nose, Belmont Area Sgt. Robert Battalini said. She was last seen wearing blue jeans, gym shoes, a black waist-length jacket and a Chicago Bears T-shirt, he said.

There is no evidence to suspect foul play, Stanton said, and police believe that April may have run away from home as a result of family problems. They learned about the problems after conducting interviews with her classmates from the Gateway to Learning School and an unidentified teenager, he said.

Battalini said locating April, who is enrolled in special education courses, is imperative because police fear she may not have the mental capability to survive on the streets. School officials have described April as having the mind of a 5-year-old.

The closest police have come to determining April`s whereabouts was the questioning of a 17-year-old with whom April spent Oct. 19.

That Friday, April did not attend classes and spent the day with the teen eating chicken, having her hair braided and complaining about her family life, Battalini said. April, who has been known to talk to strangers, met the teen that day, Battalini said.

April`s parents were unaware she did not attend classes that day, police said.

April returned to classes Oct. 22, but skipped school the next day and was last seen shortly after 7:30 a.m. while she waited for a school bus, Stanton said.

Dorothy Hough, executive director of Gateway, said April gave no signs of family problems and seemed to have a nice relationship with her teachers and classmates.

``She was a compliant student who was very pleasant,`` Hough said. ``She enjoyed school. There was no indication of trouble here.``